The 32 teams are set. Last nation into the tournament was Peru, with a 2-0 aggregate victory over New Zealand in the inter-confederation playoffs. Here are the nations that will participate in Russia 2018 — 31 of them, with the host Russia making it 32. Let’s break these down into contenders, long shots, also-rans and […]

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Whoa, there, Rams fans. Your team is not going to sprint to the Super Bowl any time soon. That 7-2 start? Nice. But when the Rams stopped playing cupcakes and ran into another quality team, the Minnesota Vikings … well, it did not go well. To the tune of 24-7, with the “highest-scoring-team-in-the-league” Rams on […]

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A shoving match broke out during the Los Angeles Lakers’ game in Phoenix last night. It was an entirely forgettable, silly display, as most NBA fracases are. A little post-whistle bump here (by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope), a modest shove there (by Tyler Ulis of the Suns) … and teammates rushing in to separate the “combatants”. Noticeable […]

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This is an important journalism skill outsiders rarely think about. Posing post-game questions. This is not the same as asking a question in an interview situation. At best, a one-on-one with flexible time limits. More likely something in a controlled environment, like a press conference. Asking post-game questions in a clubhouse littered with laundry and […]

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This is a thing, in Dubai. The police there love to add exotic and fast cars to its fleet of cruisers. The faster and more exotic, the better. The latest? Five new “patrol” cars that get from Point A to Point B in a big hurry. To wit:

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It is fun when we discover a new sports star/superstar. Just when we get conditioned to the usual roster of the elite, boom, there he is: Another potentially great player. Which is where Joel Embiid comes in. Embiid is a 7-footer with quickness, dexterity and a fine shooting touch who plays center for the Philadelphia […]

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Reality TV shows based on news-making families cannot be all goodness and light. Some weird stuff going on? Some family tension? That helps feed interest in shows like Keeping up with the Kardashians, which has been runnnig since 2007. And, also, about the Balls and their much more recent reality debut. LiAngelo Ball’s run-in with […]

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Italy went bonkers tonight. The national team, the azzurri, was held to a scoreless draw with good-but-not-special Sweden, and the home-and-away runners-up playoffs for the final four European berths at Russia 2010 went to Switzerland, Denmark, Croatia — and Sweden. Italy stays home. This is the biggest shock from this edition of World Cup qualifying […]

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Funny thing, NFL schedules. Fans and journalists yammer, before the season, about how easy or tough this or that team’s schedule is. And then they play the games … Which this year has led to an unexpected, semi-elite showdown of division-leading 7-2 teams, the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings teams. Teams who, two months […]

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While packing to move to France, I came across an ancient and tiny baseball glove. An American going abroad … can he really leave behind a baseball glove? (Even one that is not his own?) No. He cannot. There’s going away, and then there is leaving behind an essential part of your cultural patrimony. But […]

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